American Dragon: Jake Long - How it All Began
by DragonKidDJ
Summary: We all know the story of the American Dragon: Jake Long. But, we were never made aware of how he found out he was the American Dragon. This is my take on the subject! This is my first Fan Fic ever so please review with helpful advice on what you think I should change and what you like!
1. Camp Mugwomp

**Disclaimer: **_I do not own any of the characters used in this story. All characters are from the Disney Channel TV series American Dragon: Jake Long._

Enjoy!

Hello! Thank you for taking the time to read my first Fan Fiction story. This story is based off of the Disney Channel TV series American Dragon: Jake Long. I am not a very experience writer so, please excuse any spelling errors or grammar mistakes, I will do my best to catch them and will always review my work before I publish it but, things may always slip through the cracks. (Like that run on sentence!)

Just a basic idea of setting: This story takes place before the actual series begins in New York City (as the actual series does). I will do my best to keep my storyline as similar to the actual storyline as well. Enjoy!

**Chapter One: Camp Mugwomp**

Every year at the end of the week at Camp Mugwomp all of the cabins and their campers battle in a series of events for a chance at holding the Mugwomp Cup. This year was no different than years past or years to come. Every year the counselors, who seemed more wanting of the cup than their campers, chose who would compete in each event. This year the young, eight year old Jacob Long would run the Cross-Country Race as a representative of cabin eight who was tied with cabin seven in the competition. That meant that the winner of the race would win the competition for their cabin. No pressure. Normally, the very competitive Jake Long would be very confident that he could win the race but, he was suffering from a sprained ankle and Counselor Jenkins showed no mercy as he placed Jake Long in the race anyways.

"But, Counselor Jenkins, my ankle!" Jake said with a concerned tone.

"I know, I know, just suck it up!" Counselor Jenkins retorted, "The winner of the cross-country race wins the Mugwomp Cup!"

Counselor Jenkins was interrupted, "Forget it loser! The Bradster is going to destroy you!" chuckled Brad, who was also very competitive and was representing cabin seven in the race.

Jake sighed as he approached the starting line with a limp in his step. He was not so sure how he would fare in the race but, he would give it all he had. "_For Counselor Jenkins"_ he thought to himself, "_I need to win this for him."_ And they were off.

To Jake's pleasant surprise he found himself in the lead as they approached the down-hill portion and very end of the cross-country race. He was going to win! "_I guess 'the Bradster' isn't as in-shape as he appears," _Jake thought to himself as he began to feel an odd feeling in his throat, almost like an itchy, burning sensation.

He coughed several times as he tried to clear his throat when suddenly a jet of fire shot from his mouth causing a lot of confusion in Jake. "Huh! Fire!?" Jake exclaimed in shock and then he tripped and tumbled the rest of the way down the hill, landing face first in a mud puddle.

As he tried to lift his head he was pushed back into the puddle by Brad's foot who laughed and yelled, "Coming through" and then crossed the finish line. Jake sat up to see Counselor Jenkins standing over him with a disappointed look on his face. Jake too, was disappointed but, he was more confused as to what happened to him that caused him to fall and lose the race. Where did that fire come from?

After Jake's parents picked him up at the end of the day he spent the car ride home and a good portion of the night trying to figure out what had happened to him that day. He considered asking his parents but assumed they would think he was crazy. He concluded that he had nothing to be worried about as long as it didn't hurt him.

Little did he know the future that would lie ahead of him and the challenges he would face.

**A/N**: Please let me know how you like this and how you think I should improve. Like I said this is going to be pretty short. I only have four chapters worked out but, I am hoping it goes over well!

This chapter was based off of the opening scene from the episode "A Ghost Story" which is why the dialogue is mostly the same.


	2. Strange Happenings

**Disclaimer: **_I do not own any of the characters used in this story. All characters are from the Disney Channel TV series American Dragon: Jake Long._

Enjoy!

**I apologize for the time it is taking me to update. I just had to move back to school for the spring semester and am dealing with having to put down one of my favorite cats. I know the chapters are rather short and this one will be no different.**

**Chapter Two: Strange Happenings**

It's been four years since the Camp Mugwomp incident and nothing similar has happened since then. The moment still replayed in Jake's head often, in-fact every time he coughed, and it still puzzled him to this day. The idea that he had managed to produce fire with his own body did not scare Jake at all, as a matter of fact it excited him.

Aside from hip-hop music and skateboarding, Jake had a major interest in dragons. Jake was fascinated in the large, flying, fire-breathing reptiles but of course, such truly awesome creatures did not and could not exist. However, Jake had quite the imagination and liked to pretend that he could transform himself into a big red dragon.

* * *

Jake was 12 years old now and like most boys Jakes age, Jake was undergoing some changes with his body. His body was growing and he was gaining muscle as well as a few other completely normal changes that do not need to be mentioned. Jake was not the only one to notice these changes though, Jake's parents took note of their son's rapid increase in height too. Jake had grown quite a bit in the past couple of months he was taller than he was before but he was still pretty short.

"Jake-a-Roonie!" called Jonathan, Jake's father, as he knocked on Jake's bedroom door before letting himself into the room. "We need to have a little talk."

"Yo Dad, can't a kid get some privacy?" Jake didn't sound so thrilled with his father's intrusion. "You could've waited for an answer before you just busted in like that!"

"Sorry Jakers! I didn't mean to _bust in_ on you like that, do you have time to talk?"

"Yea, I guess," Jake replied with an annoyed tone, "What's up?"

"Well, your mother and I have been noticing some changes in your appearance and I wanted to explain what is happening to you."

"Say what!?" Jakes voice cracked and his face was flushed with embarrassment, "I – I don't need 'the talk,' I know what's going on! I think – I mean – promise!"

"Well, alright Jakester, just remember that everything you are going to go through is normal and if you have any questions, I have answers," Jonathan had a feeling he wasn't going to actually explain anything and he let out a sigh of relief as he walked out of Jake's room.

"Thanks Dad, I'll ask if I need to." Jake called to his father just as he closed the door behind him.

Jake did actually have questions but, he was too scared to ask his dad because Jake knew he was going through some changes that definitely were NOT normal for boys or anyone his age. Strange things were starting to happen to Jake and he didn't know how to react to them.

* * *

Jake was standing in the bathroom brushing his teeth after he finished brushing he rinsed his mouth and spit out the water and then smiled at the mirror to inspect his work. He was shocked at what he saw.

Jake did a double-take at his reflection to make sure he wasn't seeing things and now he was sure he wasn't. Jake noticed that his teeth were not the way they were this morning, they had changed. He opened his mouth wide revealing that he had a two pairs of small fangs and the rest of his teeth had become sharper.

Jake then heard his parents talking as if they were right out in the hall way, they were talking about tomorrow, Jake's Birthday, and how his father had to work late. Susan, Jake's mother was not very happy about this but, Jake understood.

"Yo Dad, it's OK that you are not going to be home tomorrow night, I understand," Jake said as he stepped out into the hallway only to find that it was empty and both of his parents were in their bedroom on the other end of the house. Jake was confused, how did he hear them?

That wasn't the only thing that surprised him, as he reached to turn off the hallway light he noticed that the switch was already off. How could he see perfectly?

Jakes senses were clearly heightened and he could see perfectly in the dark. Something was definitely going on.

He was still confused as he crawled into bed but, that feeling was quickly replaced by excitement as he thought about his birthday tomorrow and how his mom was letting him stay home from school. He was even more excited to see his Grandfather, Lao Shi, who was arriving in New York City tomorrow morning. He was moving from China to American on Jake's Birthday, how cool is that?

* * *

**A/N: How am I doing? I have the entire story planned out but, I am writing it as I go. :) **


	3. Birthday Boy

**Disclaimer: **_I do not own any of the characters used in this story. All characters are from the Disney Channel TV series American Dragon: Jake Long._

Enjoy!

**I hope you are all enjoying the story! Thank you for your reviews and feedback especially Lynse who has given me great tips and tricks to make the story even better.**

**It was brought to my attention that storyline has a couple of flaws in it such as Gramps moving from China to the US on Jake's birthday. The episode "Hero of the Hourglass" shows that Gramps lived in the US in the 70s. I have an idea to fix my flaw without changing the existing story. Also per request I will be including some of Jake's thoughts from last chapter's happenings in the beginning of this chapter. I hope you like it!**

* * *

**Chapter 3: Birthday Boy**

Jake was having a rough time falling asleep tonight. He wasn't sure if it was the excitement building up for his Birthday tomorrow or the thoughts that kept eating at him from the back of his mind. It was likely a mixture of both but, since he was struggling to fall asleep anyways he decided to let his thoughts take over.

Over and over again the scenes replayed in his head; clearly hearing his mother and father speaking when they were actually on the other side of the house and then realizing that he had remarkably good night vision. He couldn't seem to stop poking his teeth with his finger, flinching each time as he nearly cut himself on his new-found fangs.

_What is happening to me? _He thought, _someone must be playing tricks on me; none of this stuff is really possible. Maybe I am dreaming._ He realized he wasn't when he poked one of his teeth, this time breaking his skin and drawing a little blood. He didn't know if he should be scared or not or if he should tell his parents. _Was this part of getting older? He didn't think it was normal for boys to grow fangs or be able to see in the dark like it was daytime…_

All these thoughts stayed on Jake's mind as he drifted off to sleep completely unaware of what tomorrow was going to bring.

* * *

It is said that we forget nearly everything we dream about every night within the first ten seconds of being awake unless of course, our dreams had some kind of important meaning.

Jake couldn't remember the last time he recalled even a portion of his dreams but, this morning was very different. Jake remembered everything down to the very minor details.

Jake dreamed about the big red dragon he always pretended he was. He dreamed that he could fly and breathe fire too! The part that stuck with him the most was that he dreamed that he had razor-sharp teeth and claws and he could see at night-time and he had supersonic hearing. Jake dreamed that he was protecting a herd of Unicorns; something that was pretty sure didn't exist, from an evil man with a skull on his head. Jake scared him off as he breathed fire directly at the strangely dressed man and the Unicorns galloped off to safety.

Jake wasn't sure why he remembered such a silly dream but, he was oddly fascinated as to why it involved all the things that had happened to him and associated it all back to the red dragon he always imagined.

* * *

Jake ran down the stairs only to be greeted by a barrage of "Happy Birthday's" from his family. His mother and father, who had yet to leave for work and wouldn't until he could wish his oldest son a happy birthday. His sister Haley and Lao Shi, Jake's grandfather were also in the kitchen to greet him.

Jake was thrilled to see his grandfather in the kitchen, the last time Jake had seen him Jake was about 6 years old. Lao Shi had an electronics shop on Canal Street where Jake always used to play after school and on weekends, when Jake was about six years old Lao Shi had to return to China for some _important business_ and left the shop to Jake's mother to tend along with her catering business. Lao Shi promised Jake that he would return before his thirteenth birthday and here he was. Jake ran to his grandfather and gave him a huge hug and excitedly said, "Gramps! I am so glad you are here! This is totally the best birthday present ever!"

"It is a great pleasure to see you too, young one," Gramps said with a clear tone of happiness. He then leaned into Jake's ear and whispered, "However, you are about to discover something about yourself that will change your life forever."

Jake was not entirely sure how to react to his grandfather's statement so, he just leaned back and looked at Lao Shi who cracked a smile in return.

Jake's father stole a hug from Jake and then walked to the door ready to head out for work, "Bye everyone! See you tonight! Happy Birthday Jakers!"

"Thanks Dad," Jake smirked and waved to his father just as he closed the door behind him. Clearly showing that he was concerned about what his grandfather just whispered to him.

* * *

The day went on as Susan, Haley, Jake and Gramps all spent time together playing games and talking as well as sharing stories of past times. Jake opened up his presents from his mom and dad which included a helmet, knee and shoulder pads and a brand new skateboard with a tribal style dragon painted on the deck. His parents knew of his fascination with the creatures too.

After all the gifts had been opened Lao Shi asked to spend a little time alone with Jake in his room. Jake agreed and the two walked up the stairs into Jake's room and then sat on the bed after Lao Shi had closed the door.

"Jake, I would like to talk to you about something very important," Lao Shi said with a certainly serious tone in his voice, "There is a reason why I have returned to New York on your birthday, young one."

Lao Shi had Jake's full attention, "What do you mean?"

"Jake, you have gone through some changes lately, am I correct?"

"What?" Jake's voice cracked. "No, I- I uh, not the talk G, please. I don't need the talk. I promise"

"Young one, I mean you have gone through some changes that you would consider… abnormal. Yes?"

Jake was now very confused, how did gramps know this? Something was going down. "Yea, I – um, how did you know?"

"Do not worry Jake, this is very normal for a dragon of your age," Lao Shi stated as though he had just told Jake today's weather.

Jake sat motionless on his bed, wondering if he really just heard what he thought he heard. "What did you just say? I think I heard you wrong," was Jake's initial response.

"You heard me correctly Jake."

"So, I'm a dragon? Hah! G, you must be trippin' dragons don't even exist!" Just then the old man morphed into a long blue Chinese looking dragon right before him. Jake jumped back in surprise and then double-taked at the huge reptile now standing before him.

"Do you believe me now?" Questioned Gramps, clearly with a sarcastic tone.

Jake's jaw dropped, "Yeah" was all he could manage to get out. All of those strange happenings were starting to make sense now. Dragons do exist and Jake really is a dragon. His dreams really did just become a reality

"Jake, you have imagined and dreamed about a dragon lately, I want you to close your eyes and imagine yourself changing into the dragon you have envisioned and you too will be able to transform."

Jake did just as his grandfather told him. Lao Shi proudly watched as flames surrounded his grandson, something that would give most adults a heart attack, and Jake's dragon from was revealed for the first time.

"Well done young dragon," Said the elder dragon as he bowed his head to his new apprentice.

"I look exactly like I did in my dream!" Jake exclaimed, "I must be dreaming!"

"Pinch yourself young dragon, for you are not dreaming," Gramps said with a smile, "Now transform back into your human self and we will go enjoy some cake."

"Alright! Uh, how do I do that?" Jake questioned.

"The same way as before, imagine your human self. We will have plenty of time to work on all of your abilities."

Jake successfully transformed back well, almost successfully, he realized he still had a tail and managed to change that back too. "One more thing G," Jake called to his grandfather as he was about to grab the door knob.

Lao Shi turned and acknowledged his grandson.

"Does Mom know? How about Haley and Dad?"

"Your mother and sister know of your abilities however, you mustn't tell your father" A sudden serious tone was now present in Gramps' voice.

"Alright G."

"Come young dragon, we have cake to eat!" Lao Shi smiled and then started for the stairs.

Jake followed behind him his body was still shaking with excitement. As he entered the dining room he realized the lights were all off and the cake was on the table with thirteen unlit candles on top. Jake was a little confused until he realized that rather than blow out the candles he was supposed to light the candles and make a wish.

At the conclusion of the Happy Birthday song Jake lit the candles and everyone clapped. They all grabbed a piece of cake and sat down and ate and talked of Jake's new discovery.

After everyone finished their cake Gramps decided to head back to his shop. Before he left he told Jake to meet him in his shop tomorrow morning because he had one more thing that he needed to show Jake.

"Thanks again G," Jake bowed to his elder dragon, "I will see you tomorrow morning"

"I look forward to it young dragon." Gramps shut the door behind him and headed for his shop.

* * *

**A/N: Well, how did I do? This is basically the end of my part of the story; there will be a bit more in the next chapter before I go into the opening scene of the actual TV series. This chapter was definitely longer than the others. I tried to make it as interesting as possible, I hope you enjoyed it! **


	4. The Who, What Now?

**Disclaimer: **_I do not own any of the characters used in this story. All characters are from the Disney Channel TV series American Dragon: Jake Long._

Enjoy!

**Hey Guys! I must apologize for the long wait for this chapter! I am a college student and when I started this story I was on winter break and the last chapter was still in the early stages of class so there wasn't much work to be done. Now I have a ton of work! As a Psych and Education major, I have a lot of different things to study. Any who, this is likely the last chapter **

**This chapter will basically be a replication of the opening scene of the series with a few more details thrown in!**

* * *

**Chapter 4: The Who, What Now?**

Shortly after Grampa left to return to his shop Jake's father, Jonathan, returned home from a very long day of work. He was clearly exhausted but, even his exhaustion could not put bring down his quirky, cheerful ways.

"Howdy there familia!" He exclaimed as the door flew open, "you won't believe what I just saw!"

Jake, Haley and Susan all looked at Jonathan as Susan questioned, "What did you see honey?"

"I swear that I just saw a humongous snake fly away from our home!" Jonathan said but quickly added, "I must be so tired I am seeing things!"

"Oh yea Dad, you must be very tired after a long day of work. Maybe you should hit the sack early tonight?" Jake was certain that his father had just watched Grampa fly away from the house and he was very thankful that his father believed that he was seeing things.

"Good idea, son." His father returned, "But first I gotta ask, how was your Birthday?"

"It was great Dad! Better than you could ever imagine!" Jake was clearly excited but, inside he was a little hurt that he couldn't tell his own father about what he learned about himself just hours ago.

"I am sorry I could not be here today but, I am glad you had a great day regardless!"

"It's fine Dad, I know you couldn't get the day off of work, especially working on that Wholesome Heffer account that you have been talking about," Jake replied, "Now get to bed, you look like you might benefit from a good night's sleep."

Jonathan just nodded with a smile on his face and started up the stairs. It was getting pretty late and the whole family decided to head to their rooms for the night.

* * *

Jake went to his room but, he knew there was absolutely no way he was going to be able sleep tonight after learning that he was a real-life dragon. Who could sleep after learning that? Not to mention Grandpa's words kept running through Jake's head, "_I have something else that you need to know, meet me at my shop tomorrow morning."_ His words confused Jake, what more was there to learn? How could there possibly be something more important than learning that he dragon?

Jake thought about this all night but, it did not bother him much since he figured that what his grandfather had to say could only be good. In fact it excited Jake and caused him to start learning more about his dragon-self and what he could do on his own.

Jake jumped off of his bed and spoke the words, "Dragon Up!" he was sure not to be too loud since the rest of his family was probably fast asleep. Jake liked the sound of the two words, he had always said them when he pretended he could transform when he was playing his games. He never thought they could actually carry any meaning.

As Jake spoke the words he concentrated on his body as he felt it warming up as his whole form began to change. Right now transforming was a relatively slow process but Jake knew that he could do it better and faster with practice so all night long he transformed from his human self to his dragon self and back, it would be a while before he could master it, it seemed as though he was struggling to stay in his dragon form for a long period of time but, that didn't slow him down at all.

He couldn't ignore that he also had two bat-like wings that he wasn't sure how to move, he had only had to focus on moving his arms and his legs before and now he had too additional limbs that he had to think about moving. After a while Jake was able to figure out how to flap his wings and lift himself off of the ground. "Sweet!" Jake quietly exclaimed, "This is so cool!"

* * *

It was about six o'clock in the morning in New York City. The night seemed to fly by, the sun was already starting to light up the city and Jake still had not gone to bed. The excitement and motivation in Jake kept him up all night and he still showed no signs of being tired.

Jake decided to walk over to Grandpa's shop after he had tried to take flight and fell right on his face. Canal Street Electronics, Grandpa's shop, was only about a 15 minute walk away so it didn't take Jake very long to get there.

When Jake arrived he was greeted at the door by Fu Dog, Grandpa's 600-year old shar pei, "Hey Kid! What took you so long; the old man and I have been waiting."

Jake smiled and nodded as he walked by the dog, he was a little surprised to hear the dog speaking but, not much was very surprising to him at the moment, especially since he had learned of the existence of magical creatures and that _he is one_.

Jake had a seat on the couch in the back of the shop, Fu jumped up next to Jake and Grampa was already sitting in a chair facing them.

"Yo G! What's up? I spent all night trying to perfect transforming! It's still a work in progress but, I think I have it down pretty good." Jake was obviously excited, "Wanna see?"

"I am pleased to see your motivation and dedication, there will be plenty of time to show me later," the old man said with a grin on his face, "for now we need to talk about something very important."

"Yeah, sure thing G, what's up?"

"Join me on the rooftop, young dragon," replied Grampa, he was more serious now.

Jake, Gramps and Fu all walked up the stairs to the rooftop of the shop. The view was magnificent; the sun was still rising and the hustle and bustle of the busy city was starting to pick up.

"You must know that you are not any ordinary dragon, Jake," Gramps began, "You are the American Dragon."

Jake was baffled, "The Who, What Now!?"

"The American Dragon, kid." Fu couldn't help but bud in, "Do you need your ears cleaned?"

Gramps then moved closer to the edge of the roof and extended his arm, Jake and Fu were right behind. "This is your territory, young dragon and you alone are responsible for the magical creatures living within it. From the centaur herds of Highbridge Park, to the flow of the secret leprechaun stock exchange. From the gargoyle nests on the top of the Empire State Building, to the mermaids of the East River."

"Hey kid, if you can make it here, you can make it anywhere." Fu added in with some laughter.

"Ahh no problem, I am totally on it!" Jake added with a cocky tone as he cracked his knuckles.

"But first you must master your dragon training, one step at a time." Gramps interrupted, "Even a young falcon must stand before it can fly."

Still feeling quite cocky, Jake interrupted his grandfather, "Check this out G! Dragon up yo!" Jake put one fist in the air and began to transform.

"Pow! I'm not only ready to fly, I'm ready to soar! Represent!" He exclaimed before jumping off of the rooftop and taking flight over New York City. He flew around the rooftop doing loops and dips while letting out a few yells of excitement in the process. "Bad dudes beware because The American Dragon is in the house!"

Jake lowered himself in front of Fu and Gramps hovering over the busy streets of the big city, just as he was about utter more cocky statements he lost his hold of his dragon form and started to plummet towards the streets, letting out a very girlish scream as he did so. Jake managed to grab hold of a fire escape and struggled to pull himself back to the rooftop. "I'm cool, no prob. Uh- could you guys uhh- a little help down here?"

Gramps only looked at Jake and shook his head before going to help the young dragon.

* * *

As they walked down the stairs back to the shop Grandpa gave Jake the first of many speeches about being the American Dragon.

"Jake, you may be proud of whom you are but, it is not wise to exhibit cockiness. Cockiness will only lead to further danger." Gramps was serious but he also understood, "as the American Dragon you must find balance between fun and your duties."

"Ok G, I am sorry," Jake lowered his head, slightly disappointed in himself. "So when do we start training?"

"You will meet me in Central Park tonight, we shall begin your training then," Gramps replied as he led Jake to the front door.

"Okay Gramps, I will see you then! Peace!" Jake said as his grandfather closed the door behind him and he skateboarded around the City, eagerly awaiting the beginning of his training. He figured it would be difficult but, it was worth it. Jake Long is the American Dragon and he will have many challenges ahead of him that he needed to prepare for. He assured himself that he will be ready when the magical world needed him.

* * *

**A/N - Well, that's it! If you want to know what happens from here check out the series! This is my take on how he got his powers, I hope you liked it. Again, I am sorry for the wait, I have been so busy. Please leave reviews and let me know what you think. I might try to make another story if I have time. I just wanted to give this a shot and see if I could make it work.**

**Thanks for reading!**

**Take Care!**


	5. New AD:JL Story Idea

Hey Guys!

Thank you all for your great reviews on this story! Especially thank you to Lynse who had helped me find many grammatical errors and helped sweeten the story.

I have been thinking that I might want to get into another story. It would take place after Season 2. Jake would either still be 14 or have turned 15 and obviously still be a dragon.

This story would be about Jake's secret being exposed to more people, more specifically his school bully, Brad. I have been thinking about it and liking the idea more and more. A few people have written similar stories that are fantastic but, I always want to guide them a different way.

Let me know what you think. I would be starting it shortly around the middle or end of May since I will be on summer break from school and should have a lot of free time.

Review this chapter or PM me with ideas too!

Thanks!

DragonKidDJ


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